Putting off byelections until 2019 could help Liberals: strategists

By Laura RyckewaertAug. 20, 2018

Two ridings are officially vacantâ€”Outremont, Que., and Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, Ont.â€”and two more, in Burnaby South, B.C. and York-Simcoe, Ont., will be by the end of September.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, right, will soon have to make a call on when to hold a number of federal byelections, with four federal seats set to be vacant by the end of September. That includes Burnaby South, where new NDP leader Jagmeet Singh has opted to make his bid for a seat in the House of Commons. The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade

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Four federal ridings will soon be vacant, and strategists say putting off the byelections to fill themâ€”including Burnaby South, B.C., where NDP leader Jagmeet Singh will fight for a seat in the Commonsâ€”would be to the Liberalsâ€™ advantage. â€œIf I were the Liberals I would not hold that byelection [Burnaby South] before Christmas. No rush for them to call it, especially since [NDP MP Kennedy Stewart] hasnâ€™t even resigned yet, and that would also put the NDP in

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